There’s something to be said for eating at the bar.\u00a0 But there’s a certain way to go about it.<\/p>\n
First, when you walk through the front door of the restaurant, scan the room just above all the seated patrons’ heads.\u00a0 Then walk straight towards the bar and sit down without looking back.\u00a0 This will give you an aura of confidence and make people wonder if they were foolish to call ahead for a reservation or trust the waitstaff.\u00a0 Sit away from the service station, where the waiters come to pick up their drinks, or else you’re going to get distracted or overlooked by all the frenetic flapping and bitching.<\/p>\n
Now you’re all settled and you’ve got the barman’s attention.\u00a0 This is good.\u00a0 A bartender is almost always better than a waiter because you can stare them down and bring them to you.\u00a0 Plus they know that a diner at the bar is going to produce a bigger tip than some fleeting people having pre-dinner drinks.\u00a0 Tell him what you’re thinking about ordering: red meat, fish, or poultry, and ask him to recommend a good pairing.\u00a0 If he knows his stuff, you’ll have the distinct advantage of being prepared.\u00a0 If he doesn’t know his stuff, you’ve at least set the bar for what kind of service you expect, and he’ll hopefully try to keep up.<\/p>\n
Don’t order an appetizer before you make your entree order.\u00a0 That’s just asking for trouble.\u00a0 Order them at the same time to ensure a continuity to your meal.<\/p>\n
While you’re waiting for your food to arrive, turn at a forty-five degree angle towards the room.\u00a0 Don’t all the others look like high schoolers in a cafeteria now?\u00a0 You’re perched, steadfast, a couple feet above them, looking down, surmising.\u00a0 Don’t get too judgmental; just let them know you’re there.\u00a0 Take the straw or stirrer out of your drink.\u00a0 Toy with the Tabasco bottle.<\/p>\n
When the plate comes, take your time eating.\u00a0 Just because you’re at the bar doesn’t mean you have to rush.\u00a0 Go ahead and have another beverage.\u00a0 Savor your meal.\u00a0 Get to know the bartender, get him involved in your experience.\u00a0 Once you break the ice, he’ll be more than happy to tell you about what goes on in the kitchen, some funny customer service stories, or where the party is later.\u00a0 This is the enjoyable part.\u00a0 You’re a different breed now, not just a table number that needs to be turned over.\u00a0 You’re a fixture, at least for the near future, a relaxed uber-customer, open to anything.<\/p>\n
When you finish eating, decide quickly whether you’re going to stick around or not.\u00a0 Depending on the time, there may be some dedicated drinkers around you now, people with stories, opinions about the pope, or questions about your lifestyle.\u00a0 You’ve got the bartender on your side now.\u00a0 Go ahead, talk.\u00a0 Soak up the atmosphere.\u00a0 You’ll know when it’s time to ask for the check.<\/p>\n
A few guidelines.\u00a0 Eating at the bar is good if you’re alone, great if there are two of you, and delicate if there are three.\u00a0 If you’re part of a foursome, then you belong at a table.\u00a0 Don’t do shots.\u00a0 Don’t get a doggy bag.\u00a0 Don’t stare at the television.\u00a0 This is all about vantage points, catching the vibe, a deeper understanding of the restaurant.\u00a0 Taking your time and collecting wisdom, whether it’s demographics, social structures, or pretending you’re in one of those sped-up Japanese movies about crowds.<\/p>\n
If you like the place, get the barteneder’s name, his regular shifts.\u00a0 Next time you come back, even if you don’t eat at the bar, stop by and say hi, shake his hand, tell him where you’re sitting.\u00a0 This isn’t about being a regular, just about getting treated like one.\u00a0 Why should you expect to be just like everybody else?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
There’s something to be said for eating at the bar.\u00a0 But there’s a certain way to go about it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57,3],"tags":[74,68,75,395],"class_list":["post-370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cass","category-lush","tag-bars","tag-cassander","tag-drinking","tag-lush"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=370"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":916,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370\/revisions\/916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=370"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=370"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greatsociety.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=370"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}